Marie-Claire McManus, one of nine finalists chosen from thousands of applicants to present a new show on MTV, has been disqualified for lying about her age.
Edinburgh-based McManus could have been facing a bright future with the music network after winning through the national Is She MTV? auditions.
She told MTV, who advertised for girls aged 18 – 25, that she was 25-years-old.
McManus, who is actually 29, convinced MTV that she was 25 by handing over faked copies of her birth certificate and passport. However, a tip-off from a fellow contestant revealed the truth and she was immediately removed from the contest and a chance to co-host with Richard Blackwood.
An MTV spokesman said: “We are getting rid of Marie-Claire because she lied to us about her age. The auditions were quite clearly open to 18 to 25 year olds. We had no alternative to sack her. She consistently broke the rules and lied to us.
Murray Bolan, director at MTV, said: “We don’t know how she managed to make the fake birth certificate look authentic. It was very convincing.”
